82 380SEL panel lights, other electrical questions

Just bought abovementioned 380SEL for $1000.00 American.
Seems to be mechanically sound. Ouside in mint condition. Cloth
seats beat to hell. Got some electrical questions for the group:

I. Need to diagnose alternator problem:
1) Idiot light stays on
2) Output voltage is 15V+ with no load. Will continue to
operate car with battery disconnected.
3) on way home from purchase (very weird transaction - seller
gave me enough of t he willies that I checked with Police to see if
car was stolen ) tach began to register 3X actual revs, lights dimmed
to zero, and car died of electrical starvation on road - approx 25
minutes driving time with headlights and heater blower on, approx 10
second death spiral.
4) $ diodes?, V regulator?
II. Only one functioning panel light and three functioning switch
lights.
1) Need to get into instrument cluster and
2) Need to remove center console panel with all the heater
controls.
Anyone know how to do this without breaking stuff?
III. In trying to find shorts affecting alternator problem, found
that the #13 fuse circuit has no measureable resistance. Does this
circuit power more than the clock? (no owner's manual - it's on its
way from mecedes) Also found that the coil to relay E is permanently
under power. The relay seems to control the power windows. This
can't be right. I would think that the relay should make only on
demand from the switch, but I have no wiring diagram to work from.
Anyone know what this circuit should look like
IV. There is a 7 or 8 position switch down low just to the right of
the underside of the steering column with letter markings on the order
of F, E, D, B, SK, N (It's cold, and I'm feeling too lazy at the
moment to run out with a flashlight and get all of them an the right
order.) Anyone know what the heck this is?
V> Anyone out there want to relieve me of this car for $2000.00 before
I put any real money in it? It's not my car for life - I don't like
automatic transmissions - it was just the best thousand dollar car out
there, so I grabbed it.
Thanks in advance,
Roger

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